John Carpenter has returned with his first feature length film in ten years,
The Ward, and it is coming to Blu-ray August 16th. The Ward has met with mixed reviews, including on this very site, but people who want to see for themselves what the master of horror has come up with will get their chance very soon. ARC Entertainment handled the film's limited theatrical release and are also behind the home video release. We should have a review of the Blu-ray up here on or around the release date, so look for that, in the meantime, check out the details from ARC:
THE MASTER OF HORROR RETURNS WITH JOHN CARPENTER'S THE WARD
Street Date: August 16, 2011
(Los Angeles, CA) - ARC Entertainment and XLrator Media announce the return of legendary filmmaker John Carpenter (Halloween, The Thing) after a ten‐year hiatus with the release of his psychological thriller, JOHN CARPENTER'S THE WARD on DVD and Blu‐ray August 16, 2011.
The film stars an ensemble cast - Amber Heard (Drive Angry 3D, Zombieland), Lyndsy Fonseca (Kick‐Ass, CW's "Nikita"), Danielle Panabaker (Friday the 13th, The Crazies), Mamie Gummer (Taking Woodstock) and Jared Harris (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, AMC's "Mad Men"). DVD and Blu‐Ray includes exclusive commentary by John Carpenter and Jared Harris.
"Carpenter proves he is still the master of shock," said Tim Hannigan, Movies Online.
Acclaimed director John Carpenter makes his long awaited comeback to the screen with a thriller about a young woman in a 1960s mental institution who becomes terrorized by malevolent unseen forces. Kristen, a beautiful but troubled young woman, finds herself bruised, cut, drugged with laughing gas. The other patients in the ward--four equally disturbed young women offer no answers, and Kristen quickly realizes things are not as they seem. The air is heavy with secrets, and at night, when the hospital is dark and foreboding, she hears strange and frightening sounds. It appears they are not alone. One‐by-‐one, the other girls begin to disappear and Kristen must find a way out of this hellish place before she, too, becomes a victim. As she struggles to escape, she will uncover a truth far more dangerous and horrifying than anyone could have imagined.
"A damn good ghost story that knows how to mess with an audience...smoothly satisfying from start to finish" said Scott Weinberg, FEARnet.
"Well‐made and incredibly tense...Carpenter hasn't lost his ability to generate suspense," said Ryan Lambie, Den of Geek.
ARC Entertainment and XLrator Media released JOHN CARPENTER'S THE WARD in theatres on July 8, 2011.
I saw the film at Dallas IFF and wasn't too impressed, but I've heard from a few others who saw it and liked it, so I'm willing to give it another shot. I'll let you know if my opinion changes.